As WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange awaits a decision later this week on whether he’ll be extradited to Sweden to face sex crime charges, Harvard Law professor Yochai Benkler wants to remind us of another legal challenge to WikiLeaks that’s been largely forgotten over just the last month: the companies including Amazon, Visa, PayPal and MasterCard who cut off service to the company under political pressure.

As I noted on Friday, the parties implicated in the smear campaigns aimed at WikiLeaks supporters and Chamber of Commerce critics have attempted to heap all the blame on HBGary Federal (“HBGary”) and its CEO, Aaron Barr. Both Bank of America and the Chamber — the intended clients — vehemently deny any involvement in these schemes and have harshly denounced them. The other two Internet security firms whose logos appeared on the proposals — Palantir Technologies and Berico Technologies — both issued statements terminating their relationship with HBGary and insisting that they had nothing to do with these plots. Only Hunton & Williams and its partner, John Woods — the central cogs soliciting these proposals — have steadfastly refused to comment.

LONDON (AP) — A company asked by Visa to investigate WikiLeaks’ finances found no proof the group’s fundraising arm is breaking the law in its home base of Iceland, according to a document obtained by The Associated Press.